Medieval/darks ages suggestions please

I'd like to read a good book about this era, either focused on culture or a kind chronological (character led) overview of the period. I love novels about this period, but would like to have a better understanding of the time from a factual perspective

What have you read? Elizabeth Chadwick's more recent titles are excellent (Scarlet Lion, To Defy a King) and also anything by Sharon Penman. But a great and very readable non-fiction overview of the period is The Time Traveller's Guide to Medieval England by Ian Mortimer.